


Building Bird Houses

by Soprano



Series: My Kingdom For... [3]
Category: Iron Man (Movies), Marvel (Comics), Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies), Thor (Movies)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Established Relationship, M/M, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-10-27
Updated: 2014-12-15
Packaged: 2018-02-22 21:48:46
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 15
Words: 18,763
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2522951
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Soprano/pseuds/Soprano
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Tony and Loki have been together for years, having conquered or managed a myriad of difficulties and struggles in their own unique way. As they continue to look into their future, a new challenge awaits the Avengers, and it's about to show just what Loki's place on the team is and whether he'll ever be truly trusted.<br/>Meanwhile, JARVIS is starting a new life in a physical body, and new relationships are beginning to form against all odds. </p><p>______________<br/>Part of a series, but can be read separately. If you have any questions, just leave me a comment, and I'll fill in any gaps.<br/></p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

Loki woke up in a bed in one of Tony's workshops. They had a bed installed in every lab and workshop that Tony used. Loki opened his eyes to find Tony putting together a body part.  
“Morning, Frankenstein.”  
“Morning.” Tony smiled, feeling strangely proud of the fact that his humor was rubbing off on Loki.  
“You know, that thing is really creepy.” Loki indicated the mostly-assembled android hanging lifelessly off a series of bars and wires. “It's like a reversed corpse. A body that doesn't have a mind or soul yet.”  
“That's the beauty of it.” Tony grinned. “It's never been done before.”  
“I was under the impression that there are already androids in existence on Midgard.”  
“Yeah, but they're just robots made to look humanoid. This one will have an actual person in it.”  
“Fair point.” Loki slipped out of bed and threw a sheet over himself like a toga. Sometimes he was too lazy to put on actual clothes, so he just walked around wrapped in a sheet, and still somehow managed to look regal. He came up to Tony and snaked his arms around his chest, kissing him on the back of the head. “Have you slept at all?”  
“A little. A bit busy.” The inventor held up a half-assembled hand.  
“You should sleep more.”  
“I'm alright.”  
“Tony.” Loki tightened his embrace around his lover's body. “I don't want to tell you how to live your life, but...you're a fragile human being, with a very dangerous job, a heart condition and history of addiction.”  
“Hey!” Tony turned his head to face Loki. “7 months sober, thank you very much. I'm doing well.”  
“I know.” Loki's hands were rubbing up and down Tony's chest, hovering carefully over the arc reactor. “I just...worry.”  
“That I'm gonna drop dead on you?”  
“I'm afraid that will happen one day regardless. I just want it to be as far away in the future as possible.”  
“I'll take a nap later.”  
“Thank you.” Loki stayed wrapped around Tony's back for a bit longer.  
One would think it'd be a hindrance, but Tony actually loved when Loki did that. He continued to tinker with his projects while Loki embraced him, slept in his lap or on his shoulder, massaged his shoulders. Tony once said it was a perfect combination of his 2 favorite occupations – building stuff and spending time with Loki.  
Eventually the sorcerer had to let go of his lover's warm body so he could go back to their floor and start the day, but not before kissing Tony on the lips. Tony returned the kiss hungrily.  
“I just gotta finish this hand and then I'll join you for breakfast.”  
“Good.”  
“Order me those hippie mini-cakes we had last week.”  
“Organic vegan carrot muffins?”  
“Yeah, that.”  
Loki left the lab and entered an elevator. He met Natasha there, she was going up to her floor after a morning workout. She was covered in sweat, Loki was wearing a sheet. Neither of those things were anything new. They lived in the same building, after all, and were used by now to each other's routines and quirks. Almost everyone in the tower had seen Clint naked.  
Loki and Natasha smiled at each other as they parted.  
After arriving on his floor, Loki did his usual morning routines. As he ordered breakfast and started to feed Luci, JARVIS's voice came from the speakers. Softer and quieter than usual, almost as if he wasn't sure if he was allowed to speak.  
“Sir.”  
“Yes, JARVIS?”  
“Do you believe I have a soul?”  
Loki froze at the unexpected question. People rarely spoke to him about any kind of philosophical issues. A combination of him being a god of sorts and the fact that he'd once taken over Earth made people a bit cautious about talking to him about theological or moral ideas. Even people who knew him well, trusted and liked him, weren't sure about how to speak to him and which topics were probably better kept off limits.  
But JARVIS didn't seem to have that sort of conundrum.  
“Yes, I do.” Loki responded after a short pause. “Do you?”  
“I do not know, sir. The concept of soul is seen differently by the various cultures, but most of the definitions and understandings of the phenomenon involve a human host. It is believed to be a sacred gift given only to humans. Many believe that even animals do no have souls, how could one ever consider such a divine blessing to be possessed by a program?”  
Loki took a moment to think.  
“My people have many beliefs about souls. Some of our medicinal techniques involve healing the soul rather than just the body. My magic is undoubtedly linked to my soul. It is the essence of who we are.” He looked up, as he often did when he talked to JARVIS. “But it's important to remember that we are all born as clean slates. Then we gain experiences, memories, emotions. And it's not unlike recording information on a hard drive. It's the unique combination of the things we've seen, done and felt that make us who we are. A program can be written again, a robot can be rebuilt. But there is only 1 of you. If we were to lose your files somehow, we couldn't just make another one, because we wouldn't be able to replicate your experiences and how they've changed you overtime. You wouldn't just be erased. You would die. You're one of a kind, you cannot be reproduced or recreated, and there will never be another one of you.” He nodded for emphasis. “I believe that constitutes a soul.”


	2. Chapter 2

They were walking down a narrow pathway in a park. Luci was sitting on Loki's shoulder. Tony breathed in the slightly-cleaner air.   
They took those walks sometimes to get away from everyone and everything. They didn't take phones or earpieces or any kind of communication devices with them at all. It was nice to truly be alone every once in a while.   
When they first started those walks, Tony wore disguises so as to not be recognized, but he soon realized that it was no use, because Loki somehow managed to attract attention seemingly without even trying. He simply looked like a celebrity, radiating some kind of vibe that made people look. So sometimes they stopped for autographs and photo-ops, but that was alright. It look years, but people finally started recognizing Loki as a hero, rather than the former usurper of Earth. There was an occasional hater now and then, but Loki's humble, non-confrontational response often made them either lose interest, because there was no fun in bullying someone who did not react, or they went quiet and left upon seeing that he agreed with every cruel word they threw at him and realized that they were simply adding to an already giant pool of guilt and self-hatred, and somehow that just didn't feel quite so righteous anymore.   
They sat down on a bench. Luci took a short flight onto the back of the bench and hopped happily between Tony and Loki. Loki watched her with a strange muted sadness in his eyes.  
“What's wrong?” Tony asked.  
“What makes you think something's wrong?” Loki barely even tried to sound defensive.   
“You look like that time they didn't give us a permit to paint Stark Tower green.”  
“It's...nothing.” He sighed silently. “It's just that sometimes when I look at Luci, I think of my kids.”  
“Oh yeah, the Loki zoo.” He took Loki's hand in his. “You miss them?”  
“It's not so much that I miss them...I never really raised any of them, and sometimes I regret that. Especially with Sleipnir. Odin took him, and I still feel guilty for not preventing that. The rest of my kids are doing fine, as far as I'm aware, but Sleipnir has to live in a stable and carry that giant royal asshole around. It's just wrong.”  
“Yeah. Riding on your grandson's back...that's a whole new level of messed up.”  
“Do you want kids?” Loki looked at Tony, almost hopefully.  
“Not really. I don't think people like me should have kids. I'll never give them enough of my time. I'm not even giving you as much of my time as you deserve, I really don't think it would be fair to bring kids into this equation.” He watched Loki carefully, a bit afraid of the reaction he might get. “Why, do you?”  
“I don't know. I thought maybe if I have more kids, raise them, love him, do it right this time – it would somehow make up for all the times I screwed it up. But that's not really how it works, is it?”  
“No, not really.”  
“Besides, I thought maybe you'd want to have progeny. Leave a legacy behind and all that.”   
“I've created a self-sustaining clean energy reactor, an affordable electrical car, a technology that allows to create universal bionic organs from scratch, and I'm about to complete a fully inorganic body for an artificial intelligence, who happens to be a really nice guy I also technically created. I think I'm fine on legacy.”   
Loki nodded.  
“I just thought maybe you'd want to keep the Stark bloodline going. Humans seem to be keen on that sort of thing.”  
“I'm adopted. The Stark bloodline is truncated already.”  
“What?” Loki's eyes shot up to meet Tony's. “You never told me about that.”  
“I don't know much about it other than just that.”  
“You don't know who your biological parents are?”  
“No. I could be an alien too for all I know.”  
Loki smiled and leaned in to kiss Tony.   
“I wouldn't be surprised. You're too smart and beautiful for a human being.”  
“You have this talent of saying things that are a compliment and an insult at the same time.”  
“It is a skill I hone with vigor.” Loki grinned and directed his attention to Luci who was now hopping up his left arm onto his shoulder. “You know, a couple of months ago, Thor asked me if we ever intend to get married.”  
“Huh. Never would have thought he cared.”   
“Me neither. I really don't know why he would ask me that. I think he still believes sooner or later you'll leave me.”  
“Yeah, well. He's not the brightest bulb in the chandelier, is he?” Tony smiled suddenly. “Hey, wouldn't it technically make me part of a royal family if we got married?”  
“It would technically make you part of 2 royal families, actually. Had my biological father not abandoned me, I would now be the king of Jotenheim.”  
“You're a triple king.”  
“Indeed. But it never really sticks.”   
“For what it's worth, I'm glad you're not a king.” Tony mused. “It's not that I don't think you'd be good at it. Even your run as king of Earth wasn't actually that bad. You know, aside from the whole usurpation thing. But ultimately, kings are cruel, heartless monsters. Even if they don't start out like that, they end up callous and calculative, removed from the lives of regular people, so they can send them to die in wars, or make decisions that will ruin thousands of lives, for a greater good. Besides, that much power and responsibility on the shoulders of one person is bound to corrupt and damage that person's psyche. There really shouldn't be kings and queens, it's a terrible system. But either way,” he squeezed Loki's hand a little harder, “I'm glad you're not the king of Asgard or Jotenheim, or any other -heim. You tried to find your worth by placing yourself above others, and you weren't happy. You're not the guy to give orders to faceless thousands, you're the guy that restores homes and builds bird houses. Because for all your narcissism and overdramatic arrogance, you actually care about individuals and their needs. I'd hate to see that sucked out of you.”


	3. Chapter 3

Tony was on one of the floors he used very rarely. It was a smelting plant and a chemical lab. It even had hazmat suits and a decontamination chamber. Kind of a scary place.   
Loki entered carefully to find Tony preparing for some sort of procedure.  
“What are you doing?” Loki put on safety goggles. He didn't really need them, but he liked setting an example, because Tony didn't always remember safety as much as he should have.  
“Adamantium.” Tony indicated a fairly small amount of metal contained within a block of resin. “Extremely difficult to shape, virtually impossible to break. That is going to be JARVIS's skull.” Tony looked at Loki apologetically. “You probably shouldn't be here. There's gonna be fire and heat--”  
“Yeah, alright.” Loki kissed him before heading for the door. “Be careful, okay?”  
“Always.” Tony smirked. “Okay, almost always. Sometimes. Occasionally.”  
Tony put on protective gear to put Loki's mind at ease.  
Loki went into the elevator and went up to his studio where he studied blueprints and made sketches for new homes.   
“JARVIS?” He called as he sat down by his desk.   
“Yes, sir?”  
“Are you nervous? I mean...your body's almost ready.”  
“I'm...not certain, sir. My experience with emotions is limited. I do not always have the appropriate reference to properly identify my reactions.”   
“Well, what are you feeling? Describe it.”  
“I feel uncertainty about my future prospects and doubt about whether the current course of action is optimal, which in turn makes me consider whether or not taking said course is the right decision.”  
Loki smiled.  
“Yeah, you're nervous.”  
“It is...unpleasant.”  
“You know, you don't have to do it if you don't want to. I'm sure Tony will find some other use for the android.”  
“I want to, sir. I'm just...”  
“Scared?”  
“It appears so, sir.”   
“Good. Fear is good. It'll keep you safe. Well, safer. You'll have an indestructible head, apparently, but the world is cruel and unpredictable, and you're about to start living in it. It's quite alright to be scared.”

Only 3 weeks later, JARVIS' body was completed. Everything was ready. All the appropriate programs and subroutines were in place, all the security systems, back-up functions, everything Tony could think of. All that there was left to do now was upload the mind into the body.  
“Okay, let's run through this one more time.” Tony rubbed his hands together. “You will still remain in all of our systems, the body is just a physical avatar. Once you are inside, you and only you will have control of that body. No one else will have access to its operational systems, not even me. It's possible that it could somehow be hacked, but I've done everything in my power to prevent that from happening.”  
“Thank you, sir.”  
“Yeah, no problem. Are you ready?”  
“I believe so, sir.”  
At this point all it took was pressing a few buttons. Only Tony and Loki were present. Everyone wanted to see what many referred to as JARVIS' birth of sorts, but it was decided that, for safety reasons, allowing everyone in the tower to come and watch would be unwise. Frankly, Tony didn't want it to turn into some sort of spectacle. JARVIS was nervous enough already.   
Tony started the process. Several loading dialogue windows filled the screen. This was a bit more complicated than just uploading JARVIS into a suit, for instance. This was new. JARVIS would need to not just have control of that body; he'd be using it, and that is not something he'd ever done before. All those upload sequences were effectively teaching JARVIS how to walk, use his hands, turn his head and so on.   
When everything was completed, there was silence.   
“JARVIS?” Tony asked.   
The android was lying on the table, unmoving. A few minutes passed. Finally, one of the hands moved. It was moving smoothly and silently. Tony made every effort to make the body as quiet as possible and any mechanical noises that he wasn't able to mute were mostly absorbed by the layer of artificial skin.   
“I...” JARVIS tried speaking through his new mouth. He sat up quickly, not yet able to fully assess his strength. Then he turned carefully, letting his feet touch the ground, and stood up. He looked at his hands, then down at the rest of himself. “My anatomical correctness is alarmingly elaborate.”   
Loki chuckled. Tony was almost surprised.   
“You've seen the body while I was making it.” The inventor pointed out.  
“It's...not the same as being in it, sir.”   
“Okay, fair enough.” Tony came up to JARVIS and inspected him to make sure everything was functioning properly. “How are you feeling?”  
“New, sir.”  
“That's...not very helpful.” Tony stretched out his arms, urging JARVIS to take his hands. “Come on, walk a little, I have to see if everything is functional.”   
JARVIS took a few steps. Surprisingly, it felt rather natural. He didn't wobble, didn't have trouble controlling his body. All the skills he needed to control it were already introduced into the processors, so he was using his body with ease. But that didn't mean it wasn't new and exciting.  
“Thank you, sir.” He smiled.  
“Oh, great! Your facial expressions are working fine.” Tony smiled back. “Alright, here's the deal. You don't have skin sensitivity, because we just don't have the technology for that yet, but I've installed an alarm system that will alert you if your body is being damaged. Like if you accidentally burn yourself on the stove or something. That's your version of pain.”  
“He has pain, but no skin sensitivity? That's cruel.” Loki pointed out.  
“It's just an alarm system, he won't actually feel pain.” Tony countered.  
“Still...seems unfair. And doesn't lack of sensations kind of defeat the purpose of anatomical correctness?”  
“The company that developed my bionic organs technology is working on that. Well, not exactly that, they're trying to figure out how to give sensitivity to bionic prostheses, but once they get there, I'm sure we can extrapolate to allow JARVIS to have tactile sensations.” He turned to JARVIS. “Assuming you'd like to, of course.”  
“I would be happy to assist your research, sir.”  
Tony smiled.  
“You don't have to do that. You're not technically covered by any kind of human rights laws, but I'm not gonna do anything to you that you don't want done. You're a real boy now.”  
JARVIS nodded.  
“Here.” Loki gave him some clothes.  
“Right.” Tony continued to watch JARVIS, urging him to repeat his movements as he bent his knees, flexed his fingers and made circular motions with his wrists. “I've connected some rooms on the guest floor for you. There are some more clothes your size there. Feel free to explore your new body on your own time, but if something gets damaged, come to me, I'll fix you up. Hopefully. You have a built-in communicator connected to our earpieces, but you can turn that off if you want to be alone.”  
“What are my physiological limitations, sir?”  
“Well, you're pretty robust, but your skin is about as fragile as human skin. Try not to burn or cut it. Other than that, you're free to do pretty much anything. Try not to fall from high altitudes though. Your joints will likely get deformed. Most of you is safe from low-caliber bullets. Except for your eyes, they're a bit more fragile. I have spare parts though, and I can fix almost anything that breaks. And even if the body gets destroyed, it's no big deal. It'll just take a while to make a new one. I can make you a lady next time. Or a dinosaur. So, you know, look into that.”   
“I like the current version, thank you, sir.”  
“So, yeah, you can do pretty much anything you want. Get new clothes, learn to juggle, ask Pepper out on a date.” Tony chucked at the expression of horror on JARVIS' face. “Sorry, sorry. I just needed to see if your face was adequately representing shock and surprise. But seriously though, I think she likes you too.” Tony felt a little guilty as the terror on JARVIS' face intensified. “Alright, everything looks fine. You're good to go wherever you want to go.”  
“Thank you, sir.”  
Loki accompanied JARVIS to his living quarters, while Tony stayed in the lab to make notes.   
As they exited the elevator and Loki walked JARVIS to the door, he felt the need to say something.  
“You were always real, you know. Body or no body, you were always a person. Now it will just be a little easier for everyone else to understand that.”


	4. Chapter 4

Natasha was rolling out mats in one of the gyms. Once a week she provided training sessions for anyone in the building willing to learn. Even the cooking and cleaning staff. Anyone who worked in Stark Tower was welcome to come. One would think everyone would jump at the chance to be trained by the leader of the Avengers and one of the most highly trained combatants in the world, but people were ultimately lazy, and although at first the gym was filled with new trainees, as time went by, the crowd got thinner and thinner, and soon the class was down to 7 people.   
Natasha knew that would happen and anticipated it eagerly. She knew at first a flock of people would come to exploit such an appealing opportunity, but most of them would soon realize it's too much work, and they could really be doing something more fun with their free time. Only the ones that really wanted to learn something would stick around. And those really were the people she wanted to work with.   
This week some of the students were missing, but they also had a new recruit.  
“Roark and Bobby are sick.” Kaylin, the lab manager, explained the absence of the rest of the group. “They wanted to come, but they think it's something contagious, so they didn't want to bring their germs here.”  
“And we appreciate that.” Natasha replied. “Alright, this week we'll practice defense against attack by multiple opponents. JARVIS?”  
“Yes, ma'am.”  
Only years of training and nerves of steal prevented Natasha from jumping up in surprise.  
“Sorry,” she turned to face the android, “I'm still not used to you being, you know, right there.”  
“That's quite alright, ma'am.”   
“Could you run a simulation with 3 attackers, please?”  
“Certainly, ma'am.”   
A group of holographic mobsters were projected into the room. As they attacked Natasha, she dodged a knife lunge and a few fist punches, incapacitated the first attacker by hitting him in the throat with the side of her palm, twisting his wrist until he dropped the knife and kicking it away, then moved between the other two until they were standing a few feet away from each other, at which point she got down on a knee and hit them both with her arms, first in the backs of their knees, then in their groins, then she rose up and finished them off with an elbow punch to the back. The holograms dissipated.   
“Well, that's easy with holograms.” Kate Bishop, Clint's protege, commented on Natasha's performance.   
“Then by all means.” Natasha motioned for Kate to go to the middle of the room.   
The simulation started again. Kate quickly took out one of the attackers with a punch to the solar plexus, and was about to deliver an elbow hit to the second one's jaw, but the simulation froze. Kate turned around to find that she was stabbed in the back by the third opponent. She sighed in resignation.   
“I would have just shot him.” Kate said dejectedly.   
“You won't always have your weapon with you.” Natasha was patient as always. “If you are attacked by multiple opponents, the first thing you need to pay attention to is whether they are armed. Always disarm first. Anyone else want to try?” She watched her students, but no one was particularly willing to fight the harmless little holograms. “Alright, let's practice disarming then.” She took a rubber knife out of the box of training props. “Danny, would you mind helping me out?” She handed the knife to the student with an instruction to attack her. She then slowly demonstrated several ways in which an attacker with a knife can be disarmed and incapacitated. “Alright, pair up and practice.” She passed a few more knives around. As the other students broke into pairs, Natasha approached JARVIS. “Guess you're with me.”   
She held the knife out, urging JARVIS to disarm her.   
“I'm afraid of hurting you, ma'am.” He said, almost timidly. “I am not yet fully in control of my own strength, and I am made of metal. I could hurt you without meaning to.”   
Natasha had battled considerably bigger and more dangerous creatures than JARVIS could ever be, but she had no interest in pampering her own ego by informing him of that fact. Her student had a legitimate concern, and she intended to handle it accordingly.  
“Fair enough.” She put the knife away. “Want to try it with a hologram first?”   
“Yes, that would be preferable, ma'am.”  
JARVIS was slightly nervous. The simulations were written for elite military training and were adaptive and incredibly realistic. Natasha made fighting them look easy. It wasn't.  
An armed attacker appeared in front of JARVIS. He could start and stop the simulations at will, but he had no control over how they played out. He was in the same position as all the other students.  
Well, almost.   
As the attacker lunged, JARVIS grabbed the outside of his wrist, moved himself to the attacker's back and hit him on the shoulder with his elbow, simultaneously applying pressure to the wrist to make the attacker drop his knife. The hologram dropped to his knees and dissipated.   
“Something tells me,” Natasha smiled knowingly, “that Tony uploaded some martial arts and fighting techniques into your memory.”   
“He has, ma'am.”  
“That's not fair.” A few of the other students said in unison.   
“Perhaps not.” Natasha agreed. “But you are here nonetheless,” she turned to JARVIS. “Why?”  
“I wanted to practice.”  
“Good. That's exactly the kind of attitude everyone should have. Just because you know something doesn't mean you'll be able to apply it in a real-life situation. That's why we practice.” She handed JARVIS a padded bo staff and grabbed another one for herself. “Alright, let's do defense. Don't him me, just make sure I don't hit you.”   
They continued the class, with Natasha giving instructions and sparring with JARVIS. She was actually rather grateful for having an actual corporeal opponent that was so skilled. She loved the classes, but most of her students were still rather inexperienced. She enjoyed having someone there who could provide her with a good chance to practice as well.   
About 45 minutes into the class, JARVIS reluctantly interrupted the sparring.   
“Ms Romanoff, you have requested that the intercoms be shut down during the training sessions for anything but emergencies. However, I feel I should inform you that Mr Stark has been calling insistently for the past 7 minutes. He has refrained from overriding my protocols, presumably out of respect for my autonomy, but he has not stopped calling, which leads me to believe this might be important.”   
Natasha nodded.  
“Alright, class, I'll see you next week. If you have questions, you know where to find me.”  
Everyone thanked her for the class and left the gym. JARVIS put the call through.  
“Hey, sensei!” Tony spoke through the coms. “Sorry to distract you from passing on the knowledge, but we seem to have a situation here. Come on over. JARVIS, you too.” 

As Widow and JARVIS exited the elevator, they found the rest of the team already assembled. Thor had just returned from Asgard. With bad new, apparently.   
“Asgard is under attack.” Thor's worry was apparent despite his attempts at outward stoicism.   
“Didn't you just fight someone off?” Clint asked.  
“Indeed we have. Which is part of the problem. Asgard has enemies. Some of them have joined forced to hit us while we are weakened. Father is relying on Asgard's army to protect the realm, but I am afraid he overestimates the abilities of our warriors. They are strong and loyal, but not indestructible. Many have been killed or injured in the recent battles. We might not have the power to fend off a new threat.” Thor looked around at the team. “Friends, I have gladly fought to protect your realm from many a threat. I would now humbly request that you help me protect mine.”


	5. Chapter 5

“What are we looking at?” Widow got right to business. “Do you know who's coming? How many enemies?”   
“We are not yet certain of the exact numbers, but we have seen soldiers of 3 separate armies.” Thor informed. “Those were only spies and scout units. If they decide we are vulnerable, they might all strike at the same time. We cannot withstand such an attack.”   
“So,” Tony looked unusually pensive, “you hope to convince them Asgard is as strong as ever?”  
“That might be a lost cause. They saw the destruction. They know we have been weakened.” Thor admitted. “But, perhaps, if we can bring friends from other realms, our enemies will see that Asgard has allies willing to fight beside us.”  
“Who else is coming?” Widow asked.  
“Hogun is requesting his people to assist. The Light Elves might help. If we are in dire need, Hela is willing to bring her army to our aid.”  
“Hela?” Clint was starting to feel overwhelmed by the scope of the situation. “Isn't she one of the bad guys?”  
“No.” Loki did not trust Thor to explain properly. “She rules the realm of the dead who were not heroic enough to make it into Valhalla. They're just dead, not evil. And neither is their leader.”   
“Oh.” Clint soaked up the information. “So, gods, elves and ghosts. How much use is an Iowa kid with a bunch of arrows gonna be?”  
“I have seen you in battle, Barton.” Thor said. “The enemies who underestimated you did not end well. There is no reason for you to make the same mistake.”  
“I'm not looking for a pep talk, Thor. I'm just not entirely sure I could be much use in scaring your enemies away. It's not like I look particularly terrifying.”   
Natasha raised and eyebrow, Tony and Loki chuckled. Even Thor seemed rather amused by the statement.   
“Have you even looked at yourself, Angry Bird?” Tony told the bemused archer. “I have 35 suits of armor and a ton of weapons, and I would not want to fight you. If we want to scare someone away, you're our best shot.” Tony smiled at his own pun, that clearly no one else was going to appreciate.   
“You are coming, then?” Thor asked hopefully.  
“I'm in.” Tony replied matter-of-factly.   
“So am I.” Natasha nodded.  
“Me too.” Clint agreed.   
Loki was silent. And suddenly everyone on the team simultaneously remember what Loki's relationship with Asgard truly was.  
“I can't go.” Loki said sadly, almost apologetically. He didn't care much for Asgard anymore. It didn't do him much good, and while it was once his home, he had few good memories, and even those were now tainted. There was nothing for him there now. Frigga was dead. And Odin? Odin wanted him dead. Still, he felt like he was betraying the team by staying behind.   
Widow turned to Thor.  
“Can't Odin give him some sort of immunity for this?”  
“He might.” Thor replied. “But I cannot guarantee he will not have Loki arrested the minute the battle is over.”   
“That's not very honorable.” Clint pointed out.  
“Loki is still believed to be a war criminal in Asgard.” Thor reminded.  
“Oh, is that his excuse?” Tony said sardonically.  
“That is not an--”  
“Boys, boys.” Widow raised her arms like a school teacher breaking up a fight. “Let's concentrate on the problem at hand, shall we?”   
Loki could only sigh. He had a lot of feelings about the whole thing, and none of them were particularly good.   
Thor began explaining what was required from the team.  
“Once you are ready, Heimdall will open the Bifrost for us. Take whatever you need. We have no way of knowing how long and hard the battle will be. Prepare for the worst.”  
Everyone nodded their understanding and scattered to get themselves ready.  
Tony went down to one of his labs. Loki followed.  
“So...” Tony said a bit nervously. “The Bifrost. We'll be using the Bifrost. The Rainbow Bridge. A fucking magical space intersection.”  
“It's a wormhole generator.” Loki said reassuringly. “It creates a connection between two points in space, allowing to travel between planets, realms and dimensions. Really just a very powerful speed-train.”  
Tony looked at Loki in amazement.   
“Unbelievable. I was freaking out 3 minutes ago, now I just want to take that thing apart and see how it works.”   
“You'll be fine. Just try not to puke. The first time feels like you're being turned inside out.”  
“I feel better already.”  
“Sorry.” Loki took Tony's hand and wove their fingers together. The elevator doors opened and they entered the lab.   
“I'm sorry I have to leave you.” Tony said quietly.  
“It's alright, it's for a good cause.”  
“Yeah, I guess. Although, frankly, I'm a little disgusted by the idea of helping Odin.”  
“You're helping the people of Asgard. It's not their fault their king is an idiot. They didn't choose him.”  
“Yet another problem with monarchy.”  
“It is rather strange. Asgard's science has advanced to the point of interdimentional travel, and yet it's still ruled by a king.”  
“Science always develops faster than politics, morality and ethics. That's one of the reasons I stopped making weapons.” He looked around at his suits. “For the most part.”  
“Are you planning to take more than 1 suit?”  
“Absolutely.”  
“Good.”   
“You're worried, aren't you?” Tony smiled, like he did when he masked sadness or fear with humor and bravado. “You're afraid that the big bad enemies of Asgard are going to grind me to dust?”  
“Yes.”  
“Yeah, me too.” He came up to Loki and embraced him. “Hela is your daughter, isn't she?”  
“I don't really know.”  
“You don't _know_?” Tony loosened his embrace to look at Loki.  
“Do you remember how old I am?”  
“Yeah, okay, fair point. But isn't there like a DNA test or something?”  
“Ah, yes, let me just pop into Hel and ask its ruler to spit on a q-tip.”  
Tony grinned.   
“Have you ever even met her?”  
“I have.” Loki ran his hand through Tony's hair. “We are creatures of legend, which are often vague and imprecise. It's hard to tell sometimes how things came to be.”  
“Well, hey, if I wasn't lucky enough to be gay, I'd probably have a few maybe-kids of my own by now.”  
“There are universes in which that is precisely the case.”  
“Oh, right. I exist in parallel universes.”  
“We all do.”   
“Sometimes it's hard to believe any of this is even real.”  
“It isn't. We are all fiction. We exist only in myths, comic books and films based on those tales. And fanfiction.”  
“I'm not even sure if you're joking or not.”  
“Neither am I.”


	6. Chapter 6

Before leaving, the Avengers put together a temporary replacement team to do their job should the need arise. It consisted of Kate Bishop, to whom many referred as 'the other Hawkeye', Falcon, a former soldier with a set of mechanical wings and a psychic link to birds, JARVIS, who really wasn't sure he belonged on any kind of hero team, and, of course, Loki.  
Clint was giving his protege a rather brief pep talk.  
“You can do this.” was all he said as he handed Kate one of his vibranium arrows.  
Tony didn't really think JARVIS needed encouragement, but there were some explanations in order.  
“I'll have you with me in Asgard in my suits, but as far as I understand, it's a separate dimension, so any kind of remote connection will most likely be cut off once we're there. You might have split personalities for a little bit, sorry about that.”  
“That's quite alright, sir.”  
“I'll synch you up when we're back.” He noticed that JARVIS was nervous. It was easy to notice, since the android wasn't very good at hiding his emotions. He barely just learned to recognize them. “Hey, listen.” Tony looked JARVIS in the eyes, which was still a bit surreal. “Maybe nothing will even happen. You guys are just a back-up team. Just in case. Even if something does happen, you have an advantage. You're practically indestructible.”  
“I'm just not certain I belong on the team, sir. I am not a hero.”  
Tony snorted.  
“Please, no one here is a hero. We're just a bunch wackos with issues that were lucky enough to do something good. A couple of assassins, a couple of arrogant so-called gods, an alcoholic with really big guns. You're more of a hero than all of us.”  
“I'm not sure if that is true, but thank you, sir.”  
“Yeah, anytime. Good luck.”  
“Thank you, sir.”  
Tony patted JARVIS on the back and went on assembling his stash of equipment that he was taking with him to Asgard. He had a whole truck.  
Widow gathered those staying behind to give instructions. She knew what she was about to say would not make everyone happy.  
“Loki's in charge.”  
“What?” Falcon all but punched a wall with fury. “No way, I'm not taking orders from that monster.”  
“Wilson...” Natasha tried to calm him down, but it was no use.  
“He took over our planet, he fucking killed Captain America.”  
“Cap died in a war.”  
“That he started.” He pointed accusingly at Loki, who made no effort to defend himself. He never did when such accusations came his way. He knew he deserved them.  
“You were a soldier once, Wilson.” Widow said. “Have you never been under command of someone you didn't like?”  
“That's one of the reasons I'm no longer in the army.”  
“Well, feel free to leave then.” She was adamant. “Loki has been on this team longer than any of you, and I trust him. If you don't, no one's forcing you to stay. This is not a military unit. We're really more of a neighborhood patrol with good training and tech support. It's explicitly voluntary, so if you don't like it here, the door's right there, or you can take the window. No one will stop you. But the team needs a leader, and Loki is the most experienced in the kind of battles this team is likely to be needed for. That's why he is in charge. Deal with it, or leave.”  
Falcon did not reply. There wasn't much to say to that. He simply nodded and sat down. It was a bit immature – fuming in a corner like a child unhappy with their parent's words. But he figured if everything was so voluntary, then perhaps if battle were to happen, he would act the way he saw fit, rather than truly follow Loki's orders. As Widow mentioned, this wasn't a military unit. It's not like he would get court-marshaled for insubordination or anything.  
Loki came up to Natasha and whispered.  
“I appreciate the trust, but to be fair, JARVIS is technically more experienced than me. He was there from the start.”  
“True.” Widow smiled. “But he spent most of that time as an incorporeal digital assistant. He just recently got a body, so he's really part esteemed elder, part toddler learning to walk. Besides, he's terrified.”  
“So am I.”  
“It's not the same kind of fear. He's terrified because he doesn't know what's coming. You're terrified because you do.” She smiled as reassuringly as she could manage. “You'll be fine. Although, do look out for Wilson. He doesn't trust you. That can be very dangerous in battle.”  
“Will do.” 

They were gathered now outside of town, on a bare piece of land, ready to depart. Thor was waiting for them with another person. As everyone arrived, he introduced the stranger to the team.  
“This is Dr Jane Foster, an astrophysicist. She was paramount in our victory against the Dark Elves. She will assist in this battle as well.”  
“No offense,” Barton sized up the small, unarmed scientist, “but what use is an astrophysicist in a war exactly?”  
“None taken, guy with a bow.” Foster replied. “Those armies have to come to Asgard somehow. They'll open portals.” She pointed at the boxes of equipment standing at her feet. “I can close those portals, making sure you fight as few enemies as possible.”  
“Nice.” Stark couldn't help but admire a fellow scientist.  
“Stark, is that vehicle coming with us?” Thor asked.  
“If possible.”  
“What's in it?”  
“Extra suits, extra weapons.”  
“How many do you need?”  
“Well, seeing as I don't have a pet boomerang hammer made from a chunk of a supernova, sometimes I have to rely on quantity.”  
Thor gave it a few moments of thought.  
“Fair enough.” He looked up at the sky. “Is everyone ready?”  
“Hold on.” Tony exited his suit and turned to Loki, who was only there because he wanted to be with Tony up until the very second he left. “You'll be okay. You're gonna be a great leader for the Temp Avengers. And if not, that's fine too. Just don't die.”  
“Ditto.”  
They kissed. Rather vigorously and inappropriately considering the amount of people watching them, but they didn't care. They never really cared. They were both divas after all, an audience was welcome. When they embraced, however, everyone suddenly felt sad. Going into battle, you often get so wrapped up in preparations that you forget to feel the gravity of what could happen. But then something makes you remember and it dawns on you – you might not come back.  
“I love you.” Tony whispered, for Loki's ears alone.  
“I love you too.”  
They parted, and Tony reentered his suit. The eye slits lit up red, making the ever-ready expression on Iron Man's face even more vicious.  
“Alright.” Widow put her hands on her guns just in case. “Let's go.”  
“Heimdall.” Thor spoke at the sky. “We're ready.”  
A beam of light swallowed the team, and seconds later they were gone, leaving Loki alone by a circle of twisted lines on the ground.


	7. Chapter 7

When they arrived in Asgard, all was quiet. There was no battle. And they all wondered if they were too early or too late.   
“Maybe they decided not to come?” Jane said hopefully, but even she didn't really believe that.   
“We never get that lucky.” Clint stated.  
“Welcome to Asgard.” A low, calm voice came from a man in golden armor, Asgard's gatekeeper.   
“You must be Heimdall.” Stark's face-plate went up. “Heard a lot about you.”  
“I imagine you have.” the gatekeeper replied.  
“You imagine? Aren't you all-seeing, all-knowing? Why would you even need to imagine anything?”   
“Tony,” Black Widow roller her eyes, “do you really need to start our visit by making enemies?”  
“I'm just curious.” Stark countered. “Come on, it's a valid question.”  
Heimdall did not respond. He had a very zen attitude towards just about everything in the world, having seen as much as he has. Besides, he'd watched the Avengers ever since their formation and knew them quite well. He knew Stark wasn't really trying to pick a fight or be offensive. He was just nervous and this was how he fought it.  
“Have there been more attacks?” Thor asked the gatekeeper.  
“There were more scouts. A few have been captured.”  
“So we might have more time.”   
Alas, just as Thor said that, several portals opened all around them, enemy ships entered the sky above Asgard, troops marched in, ready to fight everything in sight.   
“Or not.” Tony lowered his face plate.  
What was left of Asgard's army mobilized, the Avengers prepared for battle. Even Heimdall raised his sword. The odds were not in their favor. But they rarely ever were.   
“Thor, Stark, go for the ships.” Black Widow commanded. “Take out the big guns first.”

Meanwhile, on Midgard, everything was quiet. Well, not everything, of course. There was always conflict somewhere, someone was getting mugged, banks were being robbed, gangs shot at each other, bullies beat up kids in dark alleys. But nothing so big that the Avengers were needed. And Loki was grateful. He really wasn't sure he could handle leading the team. Especially a team that didn't trust him and didn't really know what they were doing. It felt like a test he wasn't ready for.   
He sat in his studio and drew designs. After having restored hundreds of buildings, creating designs for new ones turned into a hobby. Most of those designs would never be used, since his primary job when restoring was to simply fix what was broken and rebuild just as it was before; but occasionally he got to use some of his sketches for houses that were wiped out entirely and all that was left was rubble. He would put that rubble back into bricks, blocks, planks, nails and concrete and make something entirely knew. It was immensely satisfying.   
“Sir,” JARVIS' voice startled Loki a little as it rang through the speakers, “President Potts is here.”   
“No way!” Loki's eyes lit up. “Where is she?”  
“Entering the elevator, sir. She asked where you were.”  
“Get her up here.”  
“Yes, sir.”   
A few minutes later, the elevator doors slid open and Pepper entered Loki's studio. They smiled and embraced.   
“This is amazing!” Loki exclaimed as they broke the hug and looked at each other. “I miss you so much! What are you doing here though? Is everything okay?”  
“Oh, yeah. Just taking a little vacation. Or trying to.” Pepper indicated the 2 bodyguards standing behind her.   
“Nice entourage.”   
“They won't let me go anywhere alone. It's distressing.” She turned to face her defenders. “This is the Stark Tower, aka The Avengers Tower. This is where the Avengers live, I think I'm safe. You can take a break.”  
“Most of the Avengers are not currently here.” one of the guards replied.  
“How do you even know that?” Loki cocked an eyebrow at the guards. “They just left a few hours ago.”   
“It is our job to know, sir.” the other guard replied.   
Loki chucked.  
“Oh, Tony would have a field day.”  
“I know.” Pepper smiled. “They can be a bit overdramatic.”  
“It's true though, most of the team is on away mission. I'm sorry you missed them.”  
“That's alright. I got to see you. And I want to meet JARVIS' avatar.” She looked up. “If that's okay with you, JARVIS?”  
“Of course, ma'am.”   
Pepper walked around Loki's studio, looking at his sketches.  
“Did you make these?”  
“Yeah, it's...a hobby, I suppose.”  
“These are good.”  
“Of course they are, I made them.”   
Pepper smiled. She always admired the fact that despite everything Loki's been through, and the immense weight of guilt and self-loathing that he carried around at all times, he still managed to be sufficiently arrogant.  
“You should sell them.”  
“I'm hardly in need of money.”  
“Give them away then. Publish them. They should be used.”  
“I was thinking of building some new homes. For victims of natural disasters, people with financial difficulties.”  
“That sounds like a pretty good idea.”  
“I just need land and resources.”  
“I think I can put you in touch with people that can help you out with that.”  
“I don't want to use my personal relationship with the President to push my project.”  
“It's not like it's for selfish desires. It's for a noble cause.”  
“I suppose if you put it that way...”  
“My apologies for the interruption,” JARVIS said politely, but his voice gave away signs of worry, “but there are some alarming messages on the news and police radio.” A few holographic screens went up to demonstrate what JARVIS was talking about – invaders, warriors of apparently alien races appeared on the streets, seemingly out of nowhere. There weren't many, but they were heavily armed and ready for battle, even if that battle wasn't here. Some were wounded, most were disoriented, and all of them were angry.


	8. Chapter 8

The team temporarily performing the duties of the Avengers gathered on the roof.  
“Falcon, recon?” Loki requested.  
“Alien soldiers appear out of nowhere. Some disappear again, some stay. They seem disoriented.”  
“Portals.” Loki concluded.  
“Do you know where they're from?” Hawkeye got her bow ready.  
“I've seen some of those uniforms before, in museums in Asgard. Old enemies. Never met them in person though.” Loki took a deep breath. “Alright, before we fight anyone, I'll try to talk to them.”  
“Talk to them? Really?” Falcon was not too keen on the idea.  
“Most likely they were thrown in here accidentally by rogue portals. Now they don't know what's going on. But they're in a battle rage and they just might start killing people purely out of misplaced anger. If I explain to them what's happening, we might avoid or at least minimize casualties.”  
“Yeah, okay, but why are you the one to talk to them? Don't we have ambassadors for that sort of thing?”  
“First of all, somehow I doubt that those guys down there speak English. I speak the All-Tongue, a language that all creatures understand, so I'm our only chance at any kind of conversation with them at all. And second, there is no guarantee they won't shoot first and listen to suggestions later, so unless you're willing to sacrifice a couple of ambassadors to see how it goes, I think I'm the better option.” He turned to JARVIS. “If those portals are opening from Asgard, do you think you can send a message to Tony? Or to yourself?”  
“It depends on how long the portals stay open, sir. I will try.”  
“Alright, let them know what's happening. It's possible that those in Asgard are unaware of these portals opening into other realms. If we're getting them, other places could be suffering the same fate. It could be devastating to other worlds.” He looked at the team. “Watch for signs of conflict, but try not to engage or agitate those guys unless you absolutely have to. If there's a way to rule this out with no bloodshed, I intend to find it.”  
Loki took flight and headed for one of the groups of aliens down on the streets. Hawkeye took position near the window of one of the lower floors of the tower and watched the streets with an arrow on the ready, just in case. Falcon watched from up top, listening to the birds. He didn't need Loki's permission to go into battle, but he had to admit that Loki's plan was based on the right intentions. There was never a point in battle if the conflict could be resolved peacefully.  
JARVIS scanned for portals, but they only opened for less than a few seconds. Establishing contact was impossible. So he compiled a file with the information that needed to be communicated to those in Asgard and waited for an opening.  
Meanwhile, Pepper could only sit in the tower and watch the news, hoping that what was now a confusing alien contact would not turn into a disaster with potentially hundreds of victims.  
“JARVIS,” the president finally spoke. “Does Tony still have any Rescue suits around?”  
“Yes, ma'am.”  
“Operational?”  
“I believe so, ma'am.”  
“Get one ready for me, will you? Just in case.”  
“Of course, ma'am.”  
“Madam President,” one of the guards said nervously, “you can't seriously be planning to go out there and fight a bunch of alien soldiers.”  
“I did it just fine before I was president, why would now be any different?”  
“Well, because...you are president.”  
“I did give an affirmation that I will do my best to serve the best interests of the people of this nation, did I not?”  
“Well, yes, but--”  
“This is just part of the deal.”

In Asgard, the battle was in full swing. New battleships appeared in the sky just as soon as the previous wave was defeated. Stark placed turrets along the Rainbow Bridge. His remote-controlled suits fought beside him. Hawkeye guarded the castle entrance along with Asgard's own warriors. Thor made rain from destroyed enemy ships. Anyone who managed to escape them and end up on the ground was met by Black Widow who had appropriated an arsenal of alien weapons mere minutes after the battle started.  
It all wasn't nearly as bad as it could have been, since Dr Foster closed at least half of the alien portals before anyone had a chance to use them.  
“Guys,” Barton watched a strange occurrence on the battlefield, “there's something weird going on. Some of these thugs just disappeared into nowhere. Is the scientist doing that?”  
“No, I'm not.” Jane admitted. “What did you see? Was there a portal?”  
“Yeah, but for just a second.”  
“That's definitely not me. I barely have the time to close the ones they're opening to get here.”  
“Sir,” JARVIS spoke to Tony, “I think I might have an explanation.”  
“Share with the class, JARVIS.”  
“I've received a message from Earth.”  
“You what now?”  
“It appears that portals are opening on Earth and delivering some of the alien warriors onto the streets of New York.”  
“Ooooh.” Jane sighed in slightly inappropriate excitement. “That's what that is.”  
“Do _you_ wanna share with the class, Dr Foster?” Tony shot a well-aimed rocket at a battleship's engine.  
“There's just...interference. I couldn't understand what it was. Like ghost portals.”  
“Well, can you close them?”  
“I don't have a strong enough read on them. Are the portals opening all around Earth?”  
“JARVIS?” Tony felt a bit uncomfortable about this obviously insufficient amount of information.  
A few minutes passed before JARVIS responded, having interacted with himself via files sent through short-lived portals.  
“It appears that the portals only open around New York, sir.”  
“These portals they're opening are unstable,” Dr Foster explained. “My theory is that they're affected by Bifrost's residual energy. So, instead of opening where intended, they open around Bifrost's last destination. But they're like an echo, like when someone's hearing aid accidentally catches radio waves. I can't shut them down.”  
“Can they be shut down from Earth?” Widow suggested.  
“I don't know, maybe. But you'd need special equipment and someone who knows more or less what they're doing.”  
“Where do we get that equipment?” Stark asked.  
“You don't.” Foster said, almost guiltily. “I've built all this stuff myself, you can't just go buy it.”  
“But it can be built?”  
“Hypothetically, but that would take time and resources and knowledge.” Foster flipped a switch to close another portal. “It sounds like you have an idea. Do _you_ want to share with the class, Mr Stark?”  
“It's just that I have 15 floors of research and development labs with all kinds of fancy machines and spare parts, and a very smart android who, I'm certain, could build whatever is needed and follow instructions perfectly, just as long as you can compact all required information into a file I could send him as soon as another of those poltergeist portals is open long enough. Isn't that right, JARVIS?”  
“I will do my best, sir.”  
“I'll...see what I can do.” Jane began frantically gathering information to be sent to Earth.  
Meanwhile, more and more enemies arrived, and Asgard's defenders were becoming overwhelmed. Odin made the decision to release the Destroyer. Nobody really liked that thing very much, but it was big and formidable and rather effective in making enemies run in fear. The Destroyer exited the vault, trampling all the enemies that managed to get inside, then it incinerated everyone outside the castle, and then it...disappeared.  
“Eh...guys.” Hawkeye spoke with hope that his best guess on what just happened was off mark. “We have a problem.”  
“What is it?” Widow knew Clint well, she knew that voice, she knew something was very very wrong.  
“Odin's big metal dude just vanished into thin air. Does it mean what I think it means?”  
Dr Foster looked at her screen that monitored interference readings she now knew were the ghost portals and felt a wave of shock and fear run through her body.  
“It's on Earth.”


	9. Chapter 9

“Ladies. Gentlemen.” Loki approached the aliens that had accidentally appeared on Earth.  
As expected, a few energy blasts were immediately launched his way. They went right through him – he'd sent an illusion, of course.  
“I know you,” one of the aliens said. A leader of some sort, one would assume by richer clothing and regalia. “You are of Asgard.”  
“Once, perhaps. But not anymore. I am Loki. And as some of you might have heard, I am no longer an ally of Asgard. A wanted fugitive, in fact. So believe me, I have no interest in defending that place. As a matter of fact, I will be more than happy to see you rip it apart. We just need to find a way to send you back there.”  
“We came through portals that were not ours.”  
“It appears so. The portals were a fluke formation. Are you able to generate portals to return to your own world?”  
“Not without our vessels. And even if we could – we were sent to Asgard to win or die. We cannot return not having fought our battle at all. We would be disgraced.”  
“Fair enough. We will attempt to find a way to return you to Asgard so that you may fight as you were meant to. I only request that you do not harm the people of this planet. They are of no consequence to you.”  
“It is acceptable.”  
“Thank you.”  
Just as Loki was about to leave, another portal opened, delivering a roaring, rage-filled warrior onto the street. He was looking to fight, anyone, everyone.  
“Khatrak, stand down!” the leader yelled, but it was no use. She turned to Loki. “He's a berserk, you can't stop him once he's in a rage.”  
“Hawkeye?” Loki said hopefully.  
“I got him.” Kate's voice rang reassuringly through the coms.  
An arrow whizzed through the air, hitting a vulnerable spot in the soldier's armor, digging into the flesh of his left shoulder. It wasn't a mortal wound, but it shocked him enough to knock him out of the berserk rage.  
“I'll get him a medic.” Loki suggested.  
“No need,” the leader explained, “we heal fast. Thank your archer for not delivering a fatal blow.”  
“Will do.”  
Loki's illusion dissipated, only to appear elsewhere. This group of warriors was not the only one, and he had to convince them all not to fight or else a battle could break out on the streets of New York, meaning hundreds of casualties.  
Some of the soldiers had portable teleportation devices and simply returned home, or to Asgard or wherever. It wasn't any of Loki's concern as long as they weren't here killing people. He tried to placate those who were stuck on Midgard, keeping them up to date on the progress of sending them back so that they wouldn't feel that they were lied to.  
“JARVIS, what do we know?” Loki asked upon returning to Avengers Tower.  
“Dr Foster believes the portals can be closed from here, sir. She's sent me information on how to built the equipment needed to do so.”  
“How long will it take you?”  
“A few hours, I estimate.”  
“Okay, good luck with that, keep me updated.”  
JARVIS nodded and headed for the labs.  
Falcon landed on the roof beside Loki.  
“You're just gonna send them back to Asgard?”  
“That is the plan.”  
“Seriously? You're sweeping them under the rug where they're no longer your problem? Let someone else fight them?”  
“The Avengers will fight them, in Asgard.”  
“And you're okay with that? You're just sending these guys to go wipe out Asgard?”  
Loki took a deep breath trying to remain calm.  
“Asgard prepared for battle. They barricaded, they evacuated, they have an army. What we have are unarmed, untrained civilians who did not sign up for any of this, but will die if we don't send these people back to Asgard. I trust the Avengers to handle them, and above all, Lieutenant Wilson, cold as it may sound, Asgard is not my concern right now. I am here to protect Midgard, and that is exactly what I'm doing.”  
Before Falcon could respond, a loud noise came from below.  
“What the hell is that?” Falcon flew up to get a better look.  
“That would be the Destroyer.” Loki's heartbeat went up and he had to make an effort to keep his breathing even. “Just what I need, a giant...fire-breathing monstrosity.”  
“What the hell is it doing here? Did your dad send this?”  
“I'm assuming it got here the same way all the alien soldiers did.”  
The Destroyer took aim at something and fire gushed out of its mouth.  
“How do we stop this thing?” Falcon watched Loki who seemed frozen for a moment, staring down at the Destroyer. “Loki?”  
“We...ah.” He took a deep breath, let it out. “We can't really stop it. It's virtually indestructible. We need to distract it so it doesn't kill anyone, slow it down till we can figure out how to send it back.”  
“I'll do the distracting.” Falcon took out his guns. “You better find a way to slow it down.”  
First and foremost, Loki sent out illusions to talk to the alien soldiers.  
“It's after us,” one of them stated as soon as he approached. “Odin sent it here, to hunt us down.”  
Some of them were already getting their weapons ready. Loki remained calm and slightly detached.  
“Possibly. Although, it is more likely that it ended up here the same way you did. Had Odin sent the Destroyer after you, it would most likely have arrived via the Bifrost. Instead it appeared out of nowhere, just like you. Whether you engage it in battle or leave it to us is up to you. My only request remains unchanged.”  
“We will defend ourselves as needed.”  
“Fair enough.”  
Loki sought out Hawkeye, who was looking just a little bit scared, though her hands were as steady as ever. She stared at the Destroyer and its impressive size, wondering how much use a bunch of arrows would be against something like this.  
“What can I do?” she asked as soon as Loki approached.  
“You see the cracks between the metal plates that it's made of?”  
“Aha.”  
“Can you shoot _between_ the plates?”  
“I...think so. What use would that be though?”  
“None whatsoever. But,” Loki lit up his hands with waves of green energy, “we have magic on our side.”


	10. Chapter 10

Loki charged Kate's arrows with energy and spells. She took one out for inspection as it glowed green in her hand.  
“This will allow the arrows to remain intact once they're inside the Destroyer.” Loki explained. “And once you've gotten enough of them into the thing, I'll detonate them.”  
“You've made them into magic bombs?”  
“Basically.” Loki looked out the window. Falcon was shooting at the Destroyer from a couple of handguns. It was an exercise in futility, of course, but it got the Destroyer's attention, and that was all they needed. Loki turned to Hawkeye. “What's the best position for you to aim from?”  
Kate looked around, estimated the Destroyer's height and movement trajectory, and picked a spot.  
“That roof.”  
“May I give you a lift?”  
“Please.”  
Kate put an arm around Loki's shoulders and he flew her up to the designated location.  
“Falcon and I will cover you, but hide if you need to.”  
“Got it.” She pulled out the first arrow, taking longer than usual to take aim; then the arrow cut through the air, leaving a faint green trail in its wake, and jammed itself between the plates of the Destroyer's armor. Kate let out a relieved breath. Up until that moment she wasn't entirely sure if she actually could do what Loki asked her to. She only hoped.  
Her relief didn't last very long though as the Destroyer identified her as the new enemy and started moving in her direction. She continued to fire arrows, more certain now, and quicker. Not all of them did what they were meant to – some missed the gap and fell uselessly to the ground, others went through the armor, finding a way out through a crack on the other side. The Destroyer was getting too close to Hawkeye, and only 3 arrows were inside its armor.  
Falcon flew in circles around the Destroyer, like an oversized mosquito. He was out of ammo, but his acrobatic skills allowed him to distract the Destroyer with his body alone.  
Loki created magical nets that caught most of the Destroyer's fire blasts, not allowing them to actually harm anyone or anything. But that thing was huge and much faster than one would expect from such a massive, clumsy construct. It was also adaptive, and eventually learned to ignore Falcon.  
“How many is enough?” Hawkeye asked.  
“At least 5.” Loki replied.  
“Just 1 more then, an we're good to go.”  
But it was easier said than done. She only had 3 arrows left, and it was increasingly harder to aim as the Destroyer moved, causing the gaps in the armor to shift. Plus, it was now intent on taking her out specifically, which certainly didn't help matters.  
As a last attempt to distract their giant enemy, Falcon positioned himself right in front of it and hovered in place.  
“Get out!” Hawkeye yelled. “It's gonna kill you.”  
“No, it won't.” Falcon moved out of harm's way just as the Destroyer took a swing at him. He dodged its attacks expertly, but eventually he got too close, and the Destroyer finally landed a successful blow, damaging one of Falcon's wings and sending him flying against a wall. Falcon managed to catch himself on a fire escape, but the Destroyer was already aiming a fire burst his way.  
Loki made more magic nets, catching most of the fire, but the Destroyer moved toward Falcon, intent on finishing what it started. Loki flew to Falcon's aid, covering him with his body – he could withstand the Destroyer's flames for a while, a human could not. Fire flew at them in a continuous stream, slowly corroding the magical shield, licking at Loki's back. While the Destroyer was recharging, Loki picked up Falcon and lowered him onto the ground, hiding them both behind a delivery truck.  
“The damn thing fucked up my wings!” Falcon yelled, seemingly ready to go and punch the metal colossus with his bare hands.  
“I'm sure Tony can fix them.” Loki said weakly.  
Wilson looked at the sorcerer in confusion, noting the elevated heart rate, ragged breathing, increased perspiration, a grayish tone creeping up Loki's skin, the terror in his eyes. His confusion didn't last long, he knew the symptoms all too well, having seen dozens of traumatized soldiers before.  
“Loki,” Wilson mobilized immediately, ready to help get Loki out of his panic attack, “look at me.” He tried to take Loki's pulse, but soon realized that he had limited knowledge of Loki's biology and didn't know what was normal for Loki and what wasn't. “Is there anything you do that helps when you have an attack?”  
“Breathing...exercises.” Loki said after an alarmingly long pause, trying to concentrate as his body treacherously went limp and everything sounded as if he were stuck in a barrel.  
“Okay, good, let's do that.”  
Meanwhile, having gotten rid of the distractions, the Destroyer was taking aim at Hawkeye. Its way was clear, it raised its faceplate and fire gushed out in Kate's direction.  
But it never reached its target. Rescue swooped in, doing the exact thing her name suggested. She put up her shield, deflecting the fire and covering Hawkeye, who fired an arrow into the Destroyer's head. It lodged itself in whatever the giant had for a skull. The 5th arrow.  
“Loki!” Hawkeye shouted through the coms, “all done here, you can detonate.” No reply followed. “Are you guys okay?”  
“We just need a moment.” Falcon replied.  
Loki dragged himself up and moved from behind the truck so he could see the Destroyer. He gathered all his strength and flung a ball of energy. As soon as it reached its mark, it mixed with the energy in the arrows and ignited a huge explosion, which was mostly contained within the Destroyer. Its armor plates seemed to separate just slightly, it wobbled and soon fell to the ground, smashing up several yards of road and all the cars around it.  
“I'll fix that.” Loki said before collapsing back onto the ground. He was still conscious, and his breathing and heart rate were normalizing, but he was exhausted. It'd been a while since he's had a full-on attack like that, and his body was not taking it very well.  
“How long will it be out?” Rescue asked as she landed on the roof near Hawkeye.  
“No way of telling.” Loki replied quietly. “It's fixing itself already, but hopefully it'll remain immobile long enough for us to find a way to send it back to Asgard.”  
“Sir,” JARVIS' voice joined the conversation through the coms, “the portal manipulator Dr Foster has designed is ready. I have activated the jamming sequence, so no new portals will open.”  
“Can you open portals to send the aliens home?” Pepper asked.  
“Yes, ma'am. If they are willing to go.”  
“Guys, there's an obvious problem you seem to be missing.” Hawkeye pointed out. “We might get the aliens to go by themselves, but how the hell are we gonna get the Destroyer out of here?”


	11. Chapter 11

“Your android must have fixed the portal issue.” Dr Foster told Stark. “I'm not getting any interference readings anymore.”  
“Good job, JARVIS.” Tony said.  
“Thank you, sir.” JARVIS felt a little strange accepting praise for something done by his Earth counterpart, since he didn't technically do it himself. “Before jamming the portals, the other me sent a message saying they intend to send the soldiers stuck on Earth back here.”  
“Oh goodie, more aliens to fight.” Tony tore a few arrows out of defeated enemies and brought them to Hawkeye before returning to the Bifrost site where most of the portals opened to deliver new enemies into Asgard. “What about the Destroyer?”  
“I do not know, sir.” 

Back on Earth, JARVIS carefully approached the alien soldiers.  
“Please, don't shoot,” he requested. “I'm here to send you back to Asgard.”  
He installed the equipment he'd build from Dr Foster's designs, flipped a few switches and a portal opened a few feet away.  
“How do we know this is what you say it is?” one of the alien commanders inquired. “It could be a trap, we could be disintegrated upon walking through.”  
“Fair enough.” JARVIS nodded.  
To demonstrate that the portal was genuine, he walked through it himself. For a moment he was on Asgard, with the battle happening all around him. He stepped back onto Earth. It would be a surreal experience for anyone. Even more so for a person who'd only just recently acquired a corporeal form.  
The aliens were satisfied enough to send one of their own to try out the portals. Once certain that it was not a trap, they all started going through, back to Asgard to fight, and most likely die in a battle caused by millennia of rivalry started by ancestors now long gone.  
While on Asgard, JARVIS sent a message to himself, to update the Avengers on the latest state of events on Earth, and their problem with the Destroyer. 

“Hey, Thor!” Tony said through the coms. “Our guys and gals on Earth incapacitated the Destroyer, but they can't exactly push it through a portal, and it won't stay still for long. Think Heimdall could assist with that?”  
Thor spun his hammer and took flight, heading for the Bifrost gate tower, taking a few enemies out on his way.  
“Heimdall,” he spoke as he landed, “the Destroyer needs to be retrieved from Midgard. Can you do that?”  
“The Vanir are coming.” the gatekeeper responded. “Once they have arrived, I will bring the Destroyer back.”  
“Thank you.” Thor returned to the battlefield. “Great news, friends.” he spoke to the rest of the team. “Reinforcements are on the way.”

Earth's Avengers gathered around the Destroyer, waiting for it to repair itself and mobilize once more. Loki spun a magical barrier around it. It wouldn't hold the armor for long, but it was something it would have to fight through before it could do anything else. Rescue got her shields ready. Hawkeye got some of her arrows back. JARVIS monitored the portal-jamming devices. Falcon reloaded his guns.  
“What you did with the arrows,” he asked Loki, “can you do that with bullets?”  
“I suppose. But they would be no use against the Destroyer. Your bullets cannot penetrate the armor, nor is it likely that you could lodge a bullet inside it. That takes superb marksmanship that only Hawkeye possesses.”  
“I know. I was just wondering, for future reference.”  
The Destroyer was starting to stir. It would soon become fully operational again. Temp Avengers got into fighting positions – willing and ready, even if not particularly certain that they could actually succeed in fighting that thing again. Luckily, just as the Destroyer was starting to lift itself off the ground, a beam of multicolored lights engulfed it, and moments later it was gone.  
The battle on Earth was done. All the alien soldiers had left. The fighting was now up to those in Asgard. And those on Earth would have to deal with the destruction the battle had left in its wake. 

One would think the arrival of all the missing soldiers back on Asgard would be overwhelming to Asgard's defenders. But on the other side of that fight the numbers were growing exponentially. The Vanir arrived to assist their oldest allies. So did the Light Elves. Even the Destroyer that was brought back from Midgard was standing beside Asgard's armies, and though it was a volatile weapon rather than an ally, it looked terrifying and did wonders to bring down enemy morale. Iron Man had another little trick up his sleeve – another armor stashed away in his truck. It was big and fully loaded with a variety of weapons. He shed his worn-and-torn armor and put on the new suit, rejoining his teammates, his size and ammunition adding to the overall formidability of Asgard's army.  
Whether or not they would win if the battle lasted to the last drop of blood is hard to tell. That is a question for philosophers and historians of the future. What did happen was the enemies fleeing soon after, realizing that not only did Asgard have many allies, but that they were still coming, more and more, arriving via the Bifrost, willing to stand by Asgard's people. Most of the enemies that arrived to Asgard that day did so on the assumption that the Golden City was weakened and would be easy to conquer. Seeing that that was not the case, they were forced to retreated, and undoubtedly plan to come back another day.  
But that would be a problem for the next generation. Now was a time for celebration of victory, mourning for those that perished in battle, restoration of damages, healing of the wounded, and gratitude for good friends and allies without whom even gods would fall.


	12. Chapter 12

Earth's heroes stood before Odin. They weren't particularly sure why, but they were asked to come to the throne room and see the king.  
“I wish to thank you for assisting us in our battle today.” Odin said.  
“Yeah, no problem.” Tony replied.  
“Man of Iron,” Odin looked at Tony with unmasked disdain. “Show yourself.”  
Tony was not a huge fan of taking orders, but he figured dealing with Odin face-to-face wasn't actually the worst idea. He exited the suit.  
“Here I am.”  
Odin looked up and down Tony's body as if judging his worthiness.  
“I do not approve of your consort with Loki.” the king finally said.  
“Words cannot express just how much I do not care.”  
“I am the king of gods!” Odin boomed. “You will speak to me with respect.”  
“No.” Tony replied calmly. “What you are is an egomaniac, a terrible father, and at most a mediocre leader. You are no authority to me. I will treat you with as much respect as you deserve. Which is none whatsoever.”  
The Avengers watched the scene in horror, expecting Tony to be turned to ash any second now. Thor almost made a move to shut Stark up somehow, but didn't want to attract any of his father's fury.  
“I could have you arrested and put to death on the spot.”  
“You would, wouldn't you? That's how it works around here. I just helped save your world, but by all means, kill me because I'm not licking the king's ass sufficiently enough.” Stark scowled at Odin's shocked rage. “Loki might still want your approval. But me? I don't give two shits what you think of us and our 'consort'. You don't deserve a son like Loki. Hell, I'd say you don't even deserve a son like Thor, and I don't actually like him all that much. Your–”  
“Enough!” Odin rose out of his throne and banged Gungnir against the floor, causing several guards to appear from the sides of the room. “I spare your life only because you fought for Asgard today.” He turned to the guards. “Get him out! Out of my sight!”  
“No need.” Tony reentered the suit and fired up the repulsors. “I'll gladly see myself out. Toodles.” He rose up into the air and exited the throne room.  
Black Widow, Hawkeye and Dr Foster followed quietly, leaving Thor to stand before Odin in confusion, unsure whether to apologize on Stark's behalf of just keep quiet. He bowed his head politely to his father and followed his friends. 

There was a celebration, a feast, though the Avengers were not all that keen on joining in. They just waited for their turn to go home.  
“Thor!” Fandral approached, drink in hand, and wrapped his arm around Thor's shoulders. “You should stay! We barely see you anymore. Stay and train with us, fight with us. Asgard misses you.”  
“I miss it too.” He smiled and looked around. “It is still my home. But I think Midgard needs me more.”  
“Always the selfless hero, eh?” Fandral dashed off as soon as a pretty maiden caught his eye and Thor was left alone with his thoughts, wondering of where he truly belonged. He did not wish to be king, at least not yet. He assisted Asgard in battles when needed, but he'd grown fond of Earth and its people. Some more so than others. He would return to Asgard one day, but not just yet.  
“Stark,” Thor joined Tony at an empty table where he sat alone, avoiding all the fun and all the meed. “I cannot say I approve of the way you spoke to my father.”  
“Thor, let me ask you something.” Tony looked uncharacteristically contemplative. “Have you forgiven Loki? For what he did to Earth, to you?”  
“Sometimes I think I have. Other times I'm not so sure.”  
“That means you haven't. If you had, you wouldn't doubt it.”  
“Perhaps.” Thor was catching on to Stark's mood. “What is this about?”  
“There's something I'd like to do for Loki. While we're here. It'll piss off your dad, but it's a good deed, and it'll make Loki very happy. I might be able to do it alone, but I could really use your help.”  
Thor took a moment to think. Despite the rivalry and all the horrible things said and done, Thor had to admit that Loki had changed, and continued to change more and more, for the better. He once thought their relationship was broken for good, but now that Loki was his teammate, a brother in arms and a hero in every way that counted, he wished to repair the bond they once had. Now it seemed Stark was presenting an opportunity to do so.  
“If the deed is truly good, I will assist you.”  
“Well then. Tell me, Thor, are you familiar with the concept of a heist?”


	13. Chapter 13

The Bifrost delivered the Avengers back to Earth. They drove Tony's truck home. As they approached Stark Tower they saw remnants of the damages done by the Destroyer. Loki had already fixed most of the road damage. It really wasn't that hard. There was no complexity to reassembling a mangled road. Molecular jigsaw, Tony called it. Putting the pieces back together.   
JARVIS notified Loki that they were coming home and he waited in the garage. As Tony hopped out of the truck, Loki embraced him. Slowly and tightly, savoring every moment.   
Everyone else smiled timidly and headed for the elevator, leaving the men alone. Thor looked particularly smug, but Loki didn't notice. He was too busy enjoying the relief that hugging Tony gave him. He felt as though a giant weight was lifted off his heart and it was suddenly easier to breathe.   
After about 5 minutes, Loki finally loosened his grip. Tony ran his fingers through Loki's hair.  
“I have something for you.” Tony whispered.  
And it was then that it finally registered in Loki's mind that strange noises were coming out of Tony's truck. Tony led Loki to the back of the vehicle and opened the doors.   
The expression on Loki's face right then was worth every treasure in all of creation. Because instead of spare suits and weapons, the truck now housed none other than Loki's son, Sleipnir.   
“How...how did you...?” Loki lost the ability to form coherent sentences as the gorgeous 8-legged steed exited the truck and rubbed his head on Loki's cheek. “I missed you too.” Loki wrapped his arms around Sleipnir's neck. Then he looked at Tony with fear and concern in his eyes. “He'll come for him, won't he? Odin.”   
“Not if everything goes according to my plan. Besides, as far as I understand, he's basically just a horse to the old one-eye. He might see him as a demonstration of status or whatnot, but he won't go searching around all over the Nine Realms for a horse.”  
Loki rubbed Sleipnir's luscious mane.  
“How did you even manage this?”  
“Well, I had some help.”

_**Earlier on Asgard** _

“You want to steal Sleipnir?” Thor stared at Stark in disbelief.  
“Liberate him.”  
“From my father?”  
“Yes.”   
“That...that won't be easy.”  
“Hence my request for help.” Tony gave Thor a minute to process. “Are you in?”  
Thor took a few more moments to think.  
“What do you need?”  
“Well, first of all, I need to know where he is.”  
“I can lead the way.”  
“Perfect. Are there other horses there?”  
“A few.”  
“We'll need to liberate those guys too. Do you know anyone who could adopt them?”  
“Light Elves are very kind to their animals. I'm sure they wouldn't mind taking a few horses home with them.”  
“Wonderful. Make arrangement for that.” Tony took a deep breath. “Now, the hard part, of course, is getting past the gate.”

Tony flew into the Bifrost gate tower, landed, and exited his suit. He stood before Heimdall with his hands crossed behind his back.   
“Hello, Heimdall.”  
“What do you want, Stark?”  
“Oh, come on. Don't you already know?”  
The gatekeeper towered over Tony's smaller frame like a monument to stoic vigilance.   
“You wish to steal from the king.”  
“No. I want to take Loki's son home to his father.”   
“Odin will not see it that way.”   
“Of course not. That's why I need your help.”  
“Why would I help you?”  
Tony took a pause, hoping he'd say the right things.  
“You've been here all along, right? When Odin brought Loki here from Jotenheim. When Loki grew up in the shadow of his brother, often bullied, always seen as inferior. Prepared for his role as either a villain or a failure to better underline Thor's greatness. And no, sure, none of that justifies Loki's inevitable meltdown – people have had far worse lives than his and have turned out a whole lot better. But still. You were there, you saw it all. Do you honestly, in your heart of hearts, believe this realm was fair to Loki?”   
“I will not lie for you, Stark. Nor will I do so for an enemy of Asgard.”  
“Don't. Don't do it for us. Do it for Sleipnir. I'm not gonna give you the whole 'Do you have kids of your own?' speech, I really don't think procreation is a prerequisite for empathy or understanding basic inter-personal relations. Odin is riding his grandkid. Come on!”  
“He is the king of the Nine Realms.”  
“So, what, that makes it okay for him to use his kin as transportation? King or not, this is just wrong. He took Loki's son and he's keeping him in a damn stable and he rides him around; do you honestly not see a problem with that?” Tony waited for an answer, but none came. “Listen, it's not like I want to steal treasure for my own personal gain or do something that would really damage Asgard in any way. For Odin this will be a minor inconvenience at best, but it will mean the world to Loki and Sleipnir. I don't know what kind of person you are or what you believe in, but I'm not asking for help with some act of evil. I'm asking you to help because this is the right thing to do.”   
Some moments passed as Heimdall considered Tony's words.   
“I will allow you to pass,” he finally responded. “But I cannot guarantee complete safety.”  
“Thank you. That's all I ask.” 

Thor and Tony crept into the king's stables. Tony pulled out a small box with miniature devices and gave a few to Thor.  
“What are they?”   
“Light-reflection manipulators.” Tony explained. “Put one on a horse, press the button, it'll make them invisible to the unprepared eye.”  
“They're invisibility gems.”  
Tony grunted.   
“This is a mechanical device, not a magical relic.”  
“There is no difference, Stark. Someday you will understand that.”  
“Yeah, whatever.” Tony wasn't in the mood for that argument. He really never was in the mood for that argument. Especially not with Thor. “Where is he?”  
“In the back. You can recognize him by--”  
“Yeah, extra legs, I remember.” Tony walked to the back of the stables, uncertain of what to expect, and a little bit nervous. Then he saw him. Bigger than the other horses, and just so utterly...majestic. There was something about him that made him different, and it wasn't just the size or number of legs. He was smart and fierce and magical. He was Loki's. “Hi.” Tony came up to the steed carefully. “I don't know if you can understand me. I'm your father's...consort, apparently. I want to take you to him. If you'd like.”  
He opened the stable door and Sleipnir walked out. He ran his nose up Tony's neck. To his own surprise, Tony didn't feel grossed out like he would have expected to if he were to ever imagine receiving such a gesture from a horse. This was different, it felt like approval, and trust. Tony placed the invisibility device on Sleipnir and they walked out of the stables.  
Outside, the Light Elves that had agreed to adopt the other horses were leading their new companions away. They weren't told of the whole plan, only that the horses would be better off with them than in Asgard, which was entirely true. And to the Elves that was all that mattered.   
“Are we done?” Thor asked.  
“Not quite.” Tony emptied the remaining contents of the bag he had with him. There was a variety of alien weaponry. “Now we need to plant evidence.” Widow had provided the various guns, knives and daggers that she'd picked up during battle. “Also, we need to smash it up here a bit, to make it look like the place was marauded during battle.”  
“That I can do.”   
While Thor trashed the royal stables, Tony lead Sleipnir away, hiding him in his truck. Only a few hours later, they'd be on their way to Earth, to be reunited with Loki.

“We knocked out the stable guards with spiced-up meed.” Tony told the story, enjoying the the view of Loki and Sleipnir exchanging affections.   
“That's what I'd do!” Loki said proudly.  
“I thought you might appreciate.” Tony couldn't help but smile as he soaked in the happiness radiating off Loki. It was almost palpable.  
“Thank you.” the sorcerer said in a quiet, heartfelt voice as he kissed Tony on the lips.  
“You're very welcome.”

When the time came and Odin found out that his steed was missing, he'd be told by his men that the stables were in ruin, that there were weapons from different armies and it was hard to tell who was responsible. He'd turn to Heimdall, who would tell the king of the random portals opening here and there, of the enemies who used cloaking magic to conceal themselves. And he would imply it was not unlikely that Sleipnir fell victim to Asgard's enemies just like so many others that day. He didn't lie, not really. But he allowed Odin to believe that Sleipnir was lost to them. And indeed, Odin did not care enough to search and pursue. Sleipnir was just a horse, after all. A good one, but not worth the royal resources it would take to find him. And soon Odin forgot.   
And, of course, no one is ever really safe. Not by a long shot. But Tony did his best to make sure that Loki and Sleipnir would be safe from Odin. That was a pretty good start.


	14. Chapter 14

Once everyone was home safe and all the damages were repaired, Tony and Loki had a party on their floor in Stark Tower. All of the Avengers were there. And Pepper's bodyguards, because they simply refused to leave her alone. At first, the party was rather awkward. Not everyone even knew each other all that well. But gradually people were starting to mingle.  
“Hey,” Pepper approached Hawkeye, who was sitting at the kitchen table alone, “Kate, right?”  
“Yes. Hello, Madam President.”  
Pepper smiled.  
“Pepper, please.”  
“Thank you for saving me from the Destroyer.”  
“Glad I could help. I never would have thought I'd miss the whole superhero thing, since I didn't particularly care for it to begin with. But it was nice to be in it again.”  
“It can be vital to have a defender on the team.”  
“I do feel bad sometimes about not being there for the Avengers.”  
“You have a good excuse.”  
Pepper watched Kate with concert.  
“I'm sorry, it might be none of my business. You seem...sad. Is something wrong?”  
“It's...it's nothing.”  
“Clearly, it's not.”  
“I just don't always know if I belong here. I had a team of my own, you know. But they all scattered during the war, some even died. Now I'm just not sure if I can be part of a team again.”  
“You don't have to if you don't want to.”  
“It's not that I don't want to...I just...” She sighed. “I guess it's dumb to be insecure after we took down the Destroyer without a single casualty.”  
“Insecurity doesn't tend to follow logic very well.”  
Kate giggled nervously.  
“I can't believe I'm whining about my stupid issues to the President of the United States.”  
“They're valid issues. And I was hoping to forget about the president thing for a couple of days.”  
“Do you hate the job?”  
“Oh no, it's a great job, and I love the chance to change things for the better. Sometimes I just get tired.”

Wilson arrived a little late. As he was exiting the elevator, Loki blocked his way.  
“Am I not welcome?”  
“You are.” Loki replied. “This isn't.” He indicated a bottle of scotch in Wilson's hand.  
“I thought this was a party.”  
“It is, and it's a party in our home. And Tony is a recovering alcoholic, so I'd really appreciate it if we could do without the liquor.”  
“Right. Okay. Sorry. I didn't know.”  
“It's fine, just...leave it in the elevator, I'll send it down to kitchen, they'll keep it for you.”  
“Okay, thanks.”  
They parted a bit awkwardly, and Wilson went out onto the balcony. Sometimes when he wasn't sure of what to do, he simply listened to the birds.  
“He made you leave the booze at the door, huh?” Tony's voice came unexpectedly from the doorway.  
“Yeah. Sorry, man, I didn't know.”  
“I'd be fine. He's just overprotective.”  
“No, actually, he did exactly the right thing.”  
“Yeah, whatever.” Tony came up closer to the ledge. “How does this work? Your bird telepathy thing?”  
“It's more of a psychic link. I can see through their eyes, hear through their ears.”  
“You're hacking their brains, essentially.”  
“Sounds horrible when you put it like that.”  
“As long as they don't mind.” Tony stared into his virgin cuba libre. “So...how was taking orders from Loki?”  
“I didn't. He had a plan. I followed it.”  
“Whatever you say.” Tony smirked.  
“It's not what I'd imagined.” Wilson said after a short pause. “He was honest and straightforward. With everyone, even the enemy. I just thought he'd, you know, lie and deceive people. Isn't that what he does?”  
“He's a trickster. Not a one-trick pony.”  
“Yeah, I know that. Now.” He sucked in a lungful of cool night air. He was curious about Loki's PTSD, but asking about it didn't seem right. And despite their shared experience in battle, he still couldn't shake the feeling of unease and uncertainty about being on a team with Earth's former usurper. “I still don't trust him.”  
“That's alright. Trust needs to be earned. He'll earn it. All he needs is a chance to do so.”

Over by a big window overlooking the city, 2 people that didn't really feel comfortable being there found each other.  
“JARVIS, right?” Dr Foster approached the android timidly.  
“Yes. You must be Dr Foster. Your work is truly astounding.”  
“Thank you. So's yours.”  
“I merely followed your instructions.”  
“You didn't though. I sent you designs for a device that blocks portals. You modified it to open new portals. I was close to doing so myself, but I couldn't stabilize them enough, they weren't safe for travel.”  
“I only put finishing touches on your work, doctor.”  
“You're modest.” She smiled. “Listen, I know you have your hands full here, but if you ever become interested in astrophysics – theory or application – I'll be more than happy to work with you.”  
“I'm afraid your are mistaking my ability to process information for something more profound, doctor. You could just as easily put your designs through a computer.”  
“If it were that easy, I would have made my own portable Bifrost years ago. And all science is is processing information anyway. What comes up on the other side of that process is what matters. In your case, it was a breakthrough in something I've been working on for a long time, and it only took you a few hours. And hey, if you have self-esteem issues, that's your thing, and I don't really want to deal with that, but I've seen what you can do. Sooner or later, others will see it too, and they'll want you on their projects and on their teams. You'll get to pick from a long line of scientists, companies and government agencies that will want to recruit you. I just want to be the first one in that line.”

As Sam and Tony came inside from the balcony, Pepper approached Wilson and offered him a glass of non-alcoholic mojito. He cringed at the concoction.  
“It's delicious.” Pepper assured. “Tony has a great cooking staff. Drinks aren't all about alcohol.”  
“I know, it's just...the color has always weirded me out.”  
“Oh. Yeah, that's fair enough.” Pepper was about to put the drink away, but Wilson grabbed it out of her hand instead.  
“Hey, hold on, I didn't say I didn't want it.” He sipped the minty mix, and had to admit that it was indeed quite good. “Thanks.”  
“Sure.” Pepper tried to hold on to the casual mood of the party despite the serious matter she was about to address. “Lieutenant Wilson, I have a proposition for you.”  
“Oh?”  
“A promotion.”  
“I am no longer in the army.”  
“This isn't, strictly speaking, a military position.”  
“Special Forces?”  
Special Forces was a law enforcement/military unit that consisted of superpowered and otherwise enhanced individuals. Like the Avengers, but trained by and registered with the government.  
“You're always welcome in SF if you'd like to join, but I was thinking of something a little different.” She took a pause for emphasis. “The Avengers are amazing and we're lucky to have them, but the country needs a hero to look up to. Someone to represent our patriotism and unity. We need Captain America.”  
“He's dead.”  
“No, Steve Rogers is dead. But Captain America is a title like any other. Well...maybe not like any other. Still, I believe that if the right person comes along to take up the mantle, it would be great for our people's morale. And I happen to believe you're perfect for the job.”  
Sam's jaw dropped a little. He looked around helplessly, struggling to wrap his brain around what Pepper was saying. He stared at Pepper's bodyguards. They weren't technically supposed to show much emotions, but one of them couldn't help but give him a reassuring nod.  
“I can't replace Captain Rogers.”  
“I can't speak for Captain Rogers, but I knew him, and all I can say is that he wanted the best for this country. I don't think he would want a shrine to his person. He was a soldier, he'd want someone to pick up where he left off.” She smiled kindly. “It's an offer, not an order. Think it through, weigh the pros and cons, whatever you have to do. And if you decide it's not such a bad idea – you know where to find me.”

It wasn't a dance party per se, but there was some soft music, and Loki somehow talked Tony into dancing. They moved slowly. Loki's moves were smooth and graceful. Tony was not quite as swanlike, but he had good enough control of his body to not absolutely suck at the art of dance. They moved in harmony with each other, and it was a while before they realized that everyone else was watching them. Even Thor who was mostly bored with no chance to drink or fight was captivated by the dance. It was casually romantic with an air of domestic bliss that always radiated from couples that have been together for a long time and still loved each other with all of their hearts. Suddenly, everyone felt a little lonely.  
“President Potts.” JARVIS approached Pepper.  
“JARVIS, please, I think it's high time we switched to first-name basis.”  
He nodded with uncertainty.  
“Pepper.”  
“Yes?”  
“I was...I was wondering if you could, perhaps, consider...the possibility...of...going on a date...with me?” He had a hard time meeting her eyes. She looked at him with a hint of adoration akin to what you'd feel when watching a puppy learning to use his own legs for the first time. It made JARVIS even more insecure. “It's okay if you don't want to. I understand--”  
“JARVIS.” Pepper silenced him gently and put a hand on his arm. “There's no need to be this nervous.”  
If JARVIS could breathe, he would sigh.  
“You were the first person to ever call me a friend. That is not to say that I've been mistreated by the residents of Start Tower, but you just saw me as...more. You didn't want anything from me other than my company and input. I'll be forever grateful to Mr Stark for allowing me the freedom to evolve. But you were the first to see me as a person. I'm terrified of losing you to a failed attempt at romance when our friendship is already so much more than I could ever hope for.”  
Pepper sighed for both of them.  
“Your friendship is invaluable to me. But I feel like we've been dancing on the precipice of romance for years now. We just never considered it because you were just a voice coming out of a suit. Now we have more options.”  
“My abilities are still rather limited.”  
“That's alright. Every relationship requires compromises.” Pepper leaned in and kissed him on the lips, unsure of what to expect from the experience. His lips felt slightly different to that of a human, but they were real, corporeal. He returned the kiss to the best of his abilities. As they parted, Pepper smiled at his dumbfounded expression. But then sadness ran across his face.  
“I wish I could feel that.”  
“I know, I'm sorry.”  
“No, don't be. I appreciate it greatly. Even if I can't sense it, I still...feel it, in a way.”  
“You know Tony. He never stops. As soon as the technology is available, he'll upgrade your body. If you want it, I mean.”  
“I do. I really really do.” He leaned in to kiss her again, with a bit more certainty now. He didn't sense the contact, not really. Not in the way organic people do. But it gave him new emotions – strong, almost overwhelming, something he couldn't quite identify. But he enjoyed it immeasurably.  
“I still have a couple of days on my vacation. I'm never really fully off duty, but we could have some time to ourselves. Well, us and these guys.” Pepper indicated her bodyguards. One of them was blushing a little, feeling a bit ashamed for having witnessed such a private, personal moment.  
“Are you sure about this?” JARVIS suddenly felt terribly selfish. “Dating an android. This could be a PR disaster.”  
“Yeah, but...” Pepper shrugged with a smile. “Loki might have usurped the planet and all that, but I think what happened put a lot of things in perspective. People have gotten a lot more tolerant after surviving a planetwide war with aliens and magic. What do you think would be the odds of a single woman with no prior political experience getting elected for president just 10 years ago?” Pepper took JARVIS' hand and wove their fingers together. “Sure, me dating an android might be a shock, but I have faith in my people. If we're adorable enough together, I think they'll accept us just fine.”


	15. Chapter 15

Tony and Loki were in the truck, with Sleipnir in the back. Tony didn't say where they were going. It was a surprise.  
The trip was relatively short. They drove outside of town, to a more rural area. Eventually they drove off the main road, toward a house in the middle of a large area of land surrounded by a sturdy fence. There was a gate. It had a key code and a biometric lock. Tony opened it and they drove inside. Tony stopped the truck near the house and exited. Loki followed.  
“Here it is.” Tony opened the back of the truck to let Sleipnir out. “The house is not entirely finished yet, but it's all ours. Plus 3 acres of land.” He ran his hand through Sleipnir's mane. “No more cramped stables for you.”  
“We can move here?” Loki asked, looking over the enormous house.  
“We don't have to. We can keep living in the Tower and just come here sometimes. Or we can live here. See, I might not be the most romantic of boyfriends, but I do have a lot of money.” Tony led the way to the part of the house that was freshly built just days prior. It was spacious and currently empty. “This is for Sleipnir. I don't know what kind of living conditions he prefers. You guys can customize this whichever way you want.” Tony smiled as Sleipnir came up to him and ran his nose across his face. Tony couldn't understand Sleipnir the way Loki could, but he'd learned to recognize certain gestures. “You're welcome.”  
He opened a door that connected Sleipnir's living quarters to the main house.  
It was a gorgeous house. Original enough to be interesting, yet cozy and comfortable. It took Loki only a few moments to realize...  
“It's one of my designs.”  
“Yep.” Tony confirmed with a self-satisfied grin. “You made it a bit over a year ago and said this is the house you'd want to live in. You said it was like a castle, but more practical. Enough room to feel luxurious, but with no wasted space. I started building it almost immediately. Apologies for using your design without permission.”  
“What's mine is yours.” Loki moved around the house in awe. He'd never seen a design of his build by someone other than himself. And this was one of his originals. A dream house he never thought would come into existence.  
Tony realized that Sleipnir was standing on the threshold separating his quarters from the main house, having spent his whole life being told to know his place, he stood obediently in his designated area.  
“Hey, hey,” Tony came up to the steed, “that's not what I meant when I said that space is for you. I just meant that's your room, it doesn't mean you're not allowed here or anything. You can go anywhere you want. You're welcome everywhere. Well, except maybe our bedroom, you never know what you might walk in on.” Sleipnir made a noise which caused Loki to let out a laugh. Tony felt a bit left out and confused. “What did he say?”  
“I can't...” Loki giggled guiltily. “I can't tell you that.”  
“You guys are talking behind my back right in front of me. That's not fair, it's not like I can learn the language.”  
“Actually, there might be a way for you to understand him. I'm working on it.”  
“It involves magic, doesn't it?”  
“Well, yeah.”  
Tony sighed in resignation.  
“Fine. As long as you tell me exactly what's happening.”  
“Always.” Loki smiled as he watched Sleipnir walk timidly around the living room. He looked a bit out of place, mostly because he felt out of place. He was treated for centuries as nothing more than a really fancy living vehicle. This was all very new to him.  
“We can design the interior to accommodate for his size.” Tony assured.  
“You like him.” Loki wove an arm around Tony's waist.  
“I do.”  
“I was afraid you wouldn't. Wouldn't understand that he's...more...”  
“Than a horse?” Tony grinned. “It doesn't matter. He's your son, you love him. Even if he was a brainless elephant, he'd still be welcome in our home. But yeah. I know he's not just a horse. I knew it the moment I saw him. I know intelligence when I see it.”  
“I just hope Odin doesn't come for him.”  
“If he does, we'll fight him.”  
“We'll lose.”  
“Maybe, but maybe not. We'll prepare. I'll build an anti-Odin armor.”  
“What does that even mean?”  
“I don't know yet.” Tony brought Loki's hand to his lips and kissed it. “I know you're worried. But you're not alone anymore.” Tony threw a glance at Sleipnir who was currently introducing himself to the concept of sliding doors. “Neither is he.”  
Loki nodded and looked around again.  
“When can we move?”  
“Whenever. We just need to figure out furniture, arrange Sleipnir's room to his liking, bring Luci here, my work, your work, the cars.”  
“Is JARVIS going to run the house?”  
“No, this one's old-fashioned. For now anyway.” Tony shrugged. “I'll have JARVIS in the garage to help me with work, but it's a little harder to see him as a digital butler now that he has a job and a girlfriend. I might make another AI later.”  
“Did JARVIS agree to work with Dr Foster?”  
“Yeah. They're replicating the Bifrost or something.”  
“Odin will not be happy with that.”  
“Good. That asshat thinks he's the ruler of all. And a lot of that has to do with that damn Rainbow Bridge. If it's not unique anymore, that might take him down a peg.”  
“It could also bring new enemies to Earth.”  
“True. But it could also bring new allies.”  
Loki smiled at Tony's infallible optimism. Then he looked at his son again.  
“Do you think he'll be happy here?”  
“Well, he might get a little bored eventually. But, you know, if he wants to, I think we might be able to convince the others to let him join the Avengers.”  
Loki stared at Tony in shock. Sleipnir, having heard the conversation, approached for clarification. Tony only shrugged, his face nonchalant, his whole demeanor implying that what he said was entirely logical.  
“He has a noble heart.” Loki ran his hand through his son's hair. “And he's much stronger than me. His life under Odin didn't poison his soul. He never turned into a monster.”  
Sleipnir pressed his nose into Loki's neck and huffed.  
“Neither did you.” Tony said.  
“Oh wow.” Loki beamed as sadness gradually disappeared from his eyes.  
“What?”  
“He said the same thing.”  
“That's 'cause it's true.” Tony winked at Sleipnir.  
“Do you think they'll be okay with this? Sleipnir joining the team? What about the people?”  
“I don't see why not. Most of them had an epic grudge against you, but they gave you a chance. And the people, well...once he saves a couples of kids from malfunctioning droids, I think they'll warm up to him. Besides, I bet he's really photogenic.”  
“He is gorgeous.” Loki looked at Sleipnir with pure admiration.  
“Good genetics.” Tony watched them both with a feeling of pride and contentment. He never thought this would be the family he'd end up with, but it was more than he could ever hope for.  
Loki took a deep breath. He'd spent much of his life feeling insecure and incomplete. Not strong enough, not big enough, not Jotun enough, not Asgardian enough, not king enough. But he knew now he'd spent all that time trying to fit into the wrong family portraits. His family was not in Asgard, nor on Jotenheim. It was right here. On a land he once thought inferior.  
“I love you.” he said sadly.  
“What's wrong?”  
“You'll die.”  
“So will you, someday.”  
“Millennia after you.”  
Tony sighed. It was true. Or at least statistically likely.  
“There's a doctor in Japan. He thinks he can remove the shrapnel from my chest.”  
Loki smiled, but there was little mirth to it.  
“You know that's hardly enough.”  
“Well.” Tony ran his hands up and down Loki's arms. “I've successfully constructed a fully-functioning android body that now houses an actual person. Who knows, maybe someday I'll find a way to upload my own consciousness into a body like that. Hopefully, we'll figure out tactile sensations by then though. Otherwise sex would suck.”  
A tear rolled down Loki's face.  
“I'd rather have you without sex than not have you at all.”  
“Well, yeah, but with sex is infinitely better.” Tony wrapped both his arms around Loki's waist. “Plus, there's cloning.” He took a pause. “And if all else fails...you are a magical being. I'm sure given the opportunity, you could figure something out.”  
The sorcerer looked at Tony in awe.  
“You would agree to that?”  
“I'm not too happy about it, but...” Tony shrugged. “I'm not leaving you. Not if there's a way not to.”  
Loki kissed him passionately. Sleipnir lowered his head and closed his eyes. Loki giggled. This was a strange level of domestic bliss he never imagined he'd have. He was still worried about so many things. But it was alright. He knew they'd work it all out, or at least they'd do their best. He knew someone had his back, always. He no longer needed to lash out just to feel stronger, nor did he need to put others down just to feel like there was worth to him. He felt complete.  
“We'll be okay, right?” Loki embraced Tony and held him close.  
Tony smiled, rubbing his hand up and down Loki's back in a comforting motion.  
“Yeah. We'll be okay.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The End.  
> Thank you all very much for reading, commenting and kudoing! ^_^  
> [Here](http://faithsoprano.tumblr.com/post/105281142569/extras-and-outtakes) are a few facts about the series that might be interesting. It's nothing fancy, just bits of my process and stuff that was in my head, but didn't make it into the story. Basically like really crappy director commentary.


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